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I, personally, think it's rare to find a video of a violin tune tutorial that shows when/where to shift.
Well, I found one - not the best quality and I posted it in a thread many people may not look at.
"Cielo Rojo" - violin tutorial by Erasmo Sánchez Torres, posted in the Mexican, Hispanic and Latin American Thread
Anyone else know of a Fiddle video tutorial that actually shows you where to shift in a piece?
Think they could be very helpful!
- Emily
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@Jim Dunleavy -
Thank you for sharing those helpful videos! The Bach tutorial is especially appropriate for me since Maudmaud has inspired me with her newly posted performance!
Amazing I also found a really great 3-Part Tutorial on the same "Bach Double Violin Concerto" at the "Violin Lab Channel" site on YouTube (will have to see what else they have)!
The 2nd Part has a perfect view of the fingerboard.
Btw, I love Part 1 where she talks about style in playing this piece.
- Emily
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Hey Emily,
There’s a tune tutorial on this right under our noses! Check out Gibbles in the Fiddlerman “Let It Snow” Christmas project Violin 1 tutorial. 😊
He covers various shifting options for the arrangement.
I’m actually working on this myself right now. I played the Violin 2 arrangement for the project, but I decided to seize the moment and continue working on the Violin 1 part with 4th position. I’m having a good time with this! Aside from the register, there are only a couple of measures that differ between the Violin 1 and Violin 2 arrangements.
In addition to practicing the shifting, I’m working on my 4th position intonation by playing the entire Violin 1 part in 4th position. For the most part, it’s just a matter of moving the Violin 2 part over a string, from beginning on the G string to beginning on the D string, and then of course moving it all up to 4th position. This is working out so well as an exercise since the song is already ingrained in my fingertips from Christmas.
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@Unfretted -
You are absolutely right - Thank you!
I had completely forgotten about the "Let It Snow" tutorial having shifting because I was only focused on playing the Viola part - on my 5-string (no shifting).
You've definitely come up with a good practice strategy!
...now I'm feeling really guilty for not watching ALL of Fiddlerman's tutorials!
- Emily
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ELCBK said
@SharonC -The last 2 videos are great, but I don't see any shifting being shown in them.
Am I missing something here?
Sorry, I digressed—no shifting in the Mark O’Connor tunes I posted above.
What I should have said was that in addition to tutorials with shifting, Doree Huneven also has several tutorials of Mark O’Connor's early method tunes. I think his beginner books are a good alternative if people are looking for something that is different from Suzuki.
Characterize people by their actions and you will never be fooled by their words.
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Thanks @ELCBK, I'm definitely interested in Schindler's list, and this looks quite useful. I gave it a try some time ago, but couldn't figure out good fingerings - the second repetition of the first phrase (an octave higher) seemed like quite a stretch... now I have my answer, it is a stretch, no way around it :). Not sure if I'll manage that on the viola though, maybe I'll still have to adapt it somewhat.
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@wtw -
I know what you mean about stretching! (lol)
I've decided to just get better at shifting, for whenever I feel it's too much of a stretch. I don't want to be concerned about shifting to any specific position for this, but just whatever makes playing a specific piece easier.
Maybe I should mention, for young people who don't know me, that there is a 'correct' process for learning to play... my body just doesn't always agree. 🙄
- Emily
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Well, I think it's a VERY RARE occasion to find a video of someone playing an Irish or Scottish fiddle tune that SHOWS SHIFTING!!!
In this case, it's a Shetland tune - so I'm sharing this, before I forget!
Thanks to Jim McKillop! Start looking for the 1st at 1:05!
"The Love of the Isles", composed by Willie Hunter - well known Shetland fiddler.
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havent seen bluegrass fiddlers shifting? thats weird cuz out of all the "folky trad" stuff out there theyll use the most. figured you knew some too. maidens prayer good one to look at for bluegrass since youre on fiddlevideo.
i dont have any saved but foxhunters and grigsbys hornpipe a good one to look for in old time. ashokan obviously but thatll be "called" scottish but to me fits.
if you find some more post. I dont know the exact videos let alone time in any but im pretty sure some of the above gets there.
granted... old time doesnt really need it but its out there.
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theres this one gentleman...Kenny Baker.
misnamed tuned...Foxchase..or Tennessee Mountain Foxchase. Like i said the ones Ive seen are tucked away on youtube somewhere. other than bluegrass not necessarily on fiddlevideo either. couldve been an individuals youtube channel. look at cross tuning vids. it seems it was related to that and calico or devils tuning..
and probably wont be and extended time up in 4th position .. probably just a quick shift to third or even 2nd.
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@ABitRusty -
I've seen Kenny Baker shifting, just can't find anything 'Foxchase' with shifting right now - keeping an eye out.
Will check out the cross-tuning thread later.
Found the The Love of the Isles video unusual, but I'm still trying to keep more shifting in mind - just in case it might make a passage for a fiddle tune easier, or maybe a good option for different voicing.
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@ELCBK said
I've seen Kenny Baker shifting, just can't find anything 'Foxchase' with shifting right now - keeping an eye out.
Will check out the cross-tuning thread later.
Found the The Love of the Isles video unusual, but I'm still trying to keep more shifting in mind - just in case it might make a passage for a fiddle tune easier, or maybe a good option for different voicing.
some other thoughts...
I think what a shift in a fiddle tune could prove handy for is vibrato. We use open strings mostly, depending on how you look at it whether its by choice or habit or whether necessity. So if someone wanted to use vibrato and a note was going to fall on an open string the 4th finger may be the one that would have to do the vibrato...depending on the player another finger may be easier so a shift would make sense. Slow airrs really sound good played with vibrato, waltzes in old time/bluegrass like you pointed out another place it would work. Even Kevin Burke/Martin Hayes players of that level will use vibrato in reels/jigs in place of ornaments and it still sounds Irish.
chord choices ( fingered double stops ) another reason and like you said, the voicing a player was wanting. Does that player want a certain inversion, or does he want it to fall above or below the melody..that kind of thing. One big reason with the blusey, jazzy type backing you find in bluegrass it used. plus keys are more likely to drive in that style vs say Irish. D,G and A fall nice in 1st position for most Irish stuff. Same in old time. Maybe a unison note to an open string would work easier shifting depending on what the octave melody note is youre wanting to double. I could see that.. but then its the note following and whether it would be better just to use 4th finger.
So yeah being able to shift positions another technique that can be used. I think there would need to be a reason and to me some of the above are cases where I feel its needed/useful.
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